The question was “whose side you are on.” They answered: “People’s.” The progressive movement of writers, artists, and cultural activists thus born is all set for another battle with the current crop of social problems while celebrating 80 years of its turbulent existence in the State.
M.M. Narayanan, cultural activist, and a prominent leader of the Purogamana Kalasahitya Sangham (PuKaSa), an offshoot of the movement, put it succinctly when asked about their relevance in today’s context. “The advance of right-wing forces in the country has brought about this strange phenomenon of culturisation of politics. We are for politicisation of culture.”
He said that at a time when cultural symbols such as language, dress, and food habits were being attacked for political reasons, a cultural resistance movement rooted in politics, which stands with the people’s causes was the need of the hour.
However, he is aware that it is not going to be easy. “The market-centred philosophy imported from the U.S. has polluted the hearts and minds of the people. The emergence of identity politics, micro politics and postmodernism etc., that view issues devoid of a historical perspective will make our efforts difficult,” Mr. Narayanan pointed out.
Another cause for concern, as described by K.P. Ramanan, veteran leader of the library movement, who is also part of the PuKaSa, is the “emptying of the human mind”.
“The popular belief that struck roots in the early 1990s was that human beings are just there to eat, drink, and enjoy life. Pseudo philosophies and hollow literature are attracting people’s attention,” he said.
In this context, the progressive movement would wage a battle learning lessons from its past interventions in society.
“Our movement played a major role in bringing the Communist government to power in 1957, in association with other mass organisations ,” Mr. Ramanan asserted.
During Emergency, it was the Deshabhimani Study Circle, which led the cultural fight against authoritarianism, he claimed. However, Mr. Ramanan, whose late father and writer Cherukad was a pioneer of the movement, admitted that the fall of the Soviet Union and the political and social developments in the country and abroad had weakened their activities.
Another body blow was the impact of the ideological infighting within the major Left party in Kerala, a senior leader of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), who did not wish to be named, pointed out. Mr. Ramanan, however, is optimistic. “A whole bunch of new writers and artists are coming up. They are responding to the social issues well. Our efforts will be to coordinate them,” he added. On Thursday, the PuKaSa is holding a seminar in Kozhikode to celebrate the occasion.
